Bullfrogs Stay Aggressive in 5-4 Victory

With their owners grumbling quietly at half time in the halls of the Forum about sluggish play, the Bullfrogs tried a more wide-open approach for the first time in three games and beat the Blades, 5-4, Tuesday.

The Bullfrogs’ performance in front of an announced crowd of 4,126 was still a far cry from those that helped them lead the league in scoring last season. But flashes of brilliance the team displayed on both ends of the floor in the second half were in line with what Coach Grant Sonier has preached--the Bullfrogs (2-1) will get better with every game.

“We played three pretty good games, but tonight, systematically you saw the game of the season so far,” Sonier said. “The difference in this game and the way we played the first two, was in those two, we sat back and got passive in the second half when we had a lead.

“We got guys here, that are new to the game. They have never played roller hockey before, and they’ll just get better as they play it.”

The Bullfrogs have opened with three consecutive one-goal games. Last year, they won their first seven games, averaging 14 goals a game. But Tuesday’s victory was their second consecutive and their 10th victory in 13 games over the Blades (0-2).

While Sonier waits for the newcomers to improve, the Bullfrogs have relied on veterans to keep the team in games. Rick Judson’s slap shot that beat Blade goaltender Sean Gauthier with 5 minutes 23 seconds left gave Anaheim a 5-3 lead.

The Blades’ Steve Wilson scored with just over three minutes to play, but the Bullfrogs, led by Darren Perkins, held on defensively. Los Angeles scored on only one of six power plays in the game.

Second-year player Todd Wetzel of the Bullfrogs struggled with the puck, missing seven of eight good scoring opportunities. But team captain Victor Gervais picked up the slack.

Gervais scored once and assisted on another goal, but his biggest effort came on Judson’s goals when Gervais went into the crease to screen the view of Gauthier.

“You can’t crash down on the net like you do in ice hockey,” Judson said. “It is more difficult to score in this game. You have to work on it as the summer rolls on.”

The Bullfrogs continued to suffer power-play scoring difficulties. They went 0 for 6 Tuesday and are a woeful three for 17 this season.

After the teams each killed power plays, Gervais got the team on the scoreboard, taking a pass on left side from Judson and scored over Gauthier.

Gervais, helped Anaheim to a 2-0 lead with 4:58 left in the first quarter by sliding a pass to Judson who slapped it in the net. Los Angeles’ Brent Scott picked up a Chris Nelson rebound off Anaheim goaltender Rob Laurie and scored early in the second period. Defender Steve Wilson tied the score with a slap shot later in the quarter.

The Bullfrogs outshot the Blades, 17-11, in the first half. Several of those hit the pipes and Anaheim could only muster a 3-2 lead off a slap shot from the right side by Glenn Stewart after a pass from Gervais.

Savo Mitrovic made it 4-2 early in the third period, and Brent Scott of the Blades cut the lead to 4-3 with a rebound goal.

The teams meet again Sunday at the Pond at 6 p.m. The Bullfrogs are on the road Thursday at Sacramento and Friday at Oakland.